Container making machine



April 1944- J. F. WILGUS CONTAINER MAKING MACHINE Filed March 7, 1941 2 Sheets-Shem. l

a INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS April 25, 1944. J w s 2,347,227

CONTAINER MAKING MACHINE Filed March '7, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 L 7;" if

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BYUZMM v ATTOENEYfi Patented Apr. 25, 1944 CONTAINER MAKING MACHINE Joseph F.

American Wilgus, Elizabeth, N. .T., asslgnor to Can Company, New York, N. Y.. a

corporation of New Jersey Application March '1, 1941, Serial No. 382,275

4 Claims.

The present invention relates to a machine for effecting various operations on a web of fibre material incident to producing container parts from the web and has particular reference to clutch devices which operate to permit certain sections of the machine to operate while other sections remain idle.

In the manufacture of fibre containers such as milk containers of the character disclosed in United States Patent 2,085,979, issued July 6, 1937, to J. M. Hothersall, certain of the container parts are prepared from fibre web stock on which a plurality of operations are performed as the web passes through a machine. In most cases a coating of adhesive is applied to portions of the web.

The adhesive is preferably of the character which must be heated for best results to reduce it to a fluid condition for application to the web and when the machine stands idle over night the adhesive cools and solidifies. This cooling of the adhesive freezes the coating devices so that any rotatable parts involved are held tight against movement.

Hence when it is desired to start up the machine suflicient time must be allowed to reduce the hard or semi-solid adhesive to a fluid condition. This often requires considerable time and often additional time is required, after the machine begins operating, to check over different operating parts which must be synchronized with parts at other stations so that the various operations on the web will be in proper register.

The instant invention contemplates overcoming these difiiculties by providing a simple clutch device which will mechanically disconnect the adhesive applying mechanism from the remainder of the machine so that the machine may be operated without the applying mechanism, the clutch device bringing the adhesive applying mechanism into operation in timed relation to the other operating parts of the machine when it is ready for use.

An object therefore of the invention isthe provision of clutch devices in a machine for performing a plurality of timed operations upon a web of fibre stock wherein the clutch devices disconnect certain sections of the machine so that they will remain idle while the remainder of the machine may be operated for testing and setting requirements.

Another object of the invention is the provision of clutch devices in such a machine wherein the clutch devices operate to bring or return the idle sections of the machine into operation in timed relation with the other moving parts of the machine so that all operations performed on the web will be in synchronism and proper register when such is required.

Another object is the provision of clutch devices of this character which are manually controlled so that parts of the machine may be positively operated while other parts remain inactive to insure against breakage of machine parts.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent as it is better understood from the following description, which, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, discloses a preferred embodiment thereof.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a machine embodying the instant invention, with parts broken away, the view showing a web of stock to be operated upon in place in the machine;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view in side elevation of the clutch devices, with certain parts broken away or shown partially in vertical section;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially along the line 3-3 in Fig. 2 with parts broken away;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional detail similar to Fig. 2 showing the moving parts in a different position; and

Fig. 5 is a sectional detail taken substantially along the line 5-5 in Fig. 2.

As a preferred embodiment of the instant invention the drawings illustrate principal parts of a fibre container making machine in which a substantially continuous web or strip A of fibre material is operated upon. The web is advanced along a straight line path of travel through various working stations operating in synchronism and effecting various operations which are preferably in register with or spaced relation to each other.

In such a machine the web A (Figs. 1 and 2) p sses through an adhesive applying station B where a thermoplastic adhesive in heated and fluid condition is applied in a. predetermined design to the under surface of the web. The adhesive is preferably applied by an intaglio roller II which rotates in a bath of the adhesive con-' tained in a reservoir l2 and which carries the adhesive up and applies it to the lower surface of the web.

' The reservoir I2 is secured to side frames l3 which constitute the main frame of the machine.

, are carried on the shaf The intaglio roller is mounted on a rotatable shaft I! journaled in suitable bearings formed in the main frame. A pressure roller I disposed above the moving web presses the latter against the intaglio roller. This pressure roller is mounted on a shaft II which is iournaled in suitable bearings formed in the main frame. Meshing spur gears I8, I 9 carried on the respective roller shafts I5, I! rotate the rollers in unison.

After the web receives its coating of adhesive it advances through a scoring station D where the web is transversel scored to produce score lines E in the web in a predetermined relation to the adhesive pattern on the under side or the web. These score-lines are formed by a pair of rotatable scoring rollers 23 between which the web advances. The rollers are mounted on cross shafts 24 Journaled in suitable bearings formed in the machine main frame and these shafts are rotated in unison by meshing spur gears 25 which After the web is scored a printed design Fis preferably applied to the top or outer surface in a predetermined relation to the score lines and to the adhesive pattern on the under side of the web.

, For this purpose the web is advanced through a printing station G at which a conventional printing mechanism 21 is utilized to apply ink to an imprinting roller 20 which in turn applies it to the web. The printing roller is mounted on a shaft 29 and this roller is backed up by a pressure roller 3| mounted on a shaft 32. The shafts are journaied in suitable bearings formed in the machine mainframe and are rotated in unison by a pair of meshing spur gears 34' which are mounted on the shafts.

The various rollers at these working stations are preferably driven in synchronism in order that the work done on the web at these stations will be in perfect register. For this purpose the rollers are driven from a common main driving shaft 35 which extends the full length of the machine and which is journaled in suitable bearings formed in the machine main frame.

At the printing station G the pressure roller shaft 32 is rotated by way 38 which meshes with a helical drive pinion 31 can-led on the main drivingshaft II. In a similar manner the scoring D are rotated in synchronism with the printing mechanism by way of a helical, driven gear ll the lower scoring roller shaft 24. This helical gear meshes with a helical drive pinion 42 driving shaft 35.

At the adhesive applying station B the adhesive applying roller II is rotated by a gear 45 which 48 keyed to a clutch shaft end of the shaft 11 is iournaled in a bearing formed in this housing.

The clutch unit H includes a clutch wheel Ii (Figs gear 46 and the clutch wheel The gear 56 meshes with a helical drive pinion 51 mounted on the main drive shaft 35. The pinion thus rotates the gear 56 continuously in time of a helical driven gear rollers 23 at the station which is carried on the main knurled finger engaging head 64 with the moving parts at the other stations of the machine. 1

The pawl 54 is normally held partially by centrifugal action and partially by light spring tension in engagement with the tooth 52 of the clutch wheel 5| and this connects the clutch wheel and its shaft 41 to the gear 56. The shaft 41 is thereby rotated and this rotates the gears lntaglio roller II on the shaft i5.

Provision is made for disconnecting the pawl 54 from the clutch wheel tooth 52 when desired to operatively disconnect the adhesive coating devices from the remainder of the machine. For this purpose the pawl 54 is formed with a long curved tail member 6| which as it sweeps around with the gear 56, is engageable with a manually adjusted disconnecting pin'ii (Figs. 2 and 4).

The disconnecting pin 63 is formed with a and just below this head the pin carries a pair of spaced collars O5. 66. The base of the head and the collars set off between them an upper annular groove 61 and a lower annular groove 68.

The collars 65, 66 on the pin fit snugly into an aperture ll formed in a plate 12 (see also Fig. 5) secured to a boss 13 formed on the clutch unit housing 48. The housing boss is formed with a continuing and aligning hole or aperture 14 and these apertures serve as a guide for the collars and also permit the pin 63 to'extend into the interior of the housing adjacent the path of travel of the tail member SI of the pawl 54.

A latch 16 is mounted on the outside of the plate I2. This latch is carried on a pivot stud 'll (Fig. 5) secured in the plate so that the latch may be swung through an arcuate path of travel.

The latch is formed with an open end clearance slot 18 for the pin 63 which permits of swinging the latch'into position adjacent and around the pin so that it may be engaged in one or the other of the pin grooves 61, 68 to hold the pin in a predetermined position. An auxiliary slot 19 is also formed in the latch adjacent the pin slot and this auxiliary slot permits or the latch engaging around a retaining screw 8| which is secured in the plate 12. This screw retains the latch flat against the plate when the latch is in engagement with the pin.

When the latch 16 is positioned in the lower groove 68 of the disconnecting pin 63 as shown in Fig. 2, the inner end of the pin is in a position out of the .path of travel of the tail member SI of the pawl 54 and thus permits the pawl to remain in operative engagement with the single tooth clutch wheel 51 When it is desired to disconnect the clutch wheel from the driving gear 56, the latch I6 is swung out of the lower groove wardly so that the upper groove 61 will align with the latch. The latch is then swung rearwardly or returned to holding position as shown in Figs. 4 and 5 and this looks the pin in this new position.

In this new position of the pin 63 its inner end projects into the path of travel of the tail member 6! of the pawl 54. Thus as the pawl travels around with the rotating gear 56 the tail member 6| engages the pin. This rocks the pawl on its pin 55 against the tension thus lifts the pawl out of engagement with the tooth 52 of the clutch wheel 5|. The clutch wheel is thereby disconnected from the driving gear and hence the shaft 41 and its associated adhesive applying devices cease operating as a result of immediate separation of pressure roller of its spring and' position even though the remainder of the machine continues to operate and the tail member continues to sweep around with the still rotating gear 56, the tail member engaging against the pin at each revolution of the ger r when the tail member moves past said pin.

The described immediate separatmn of the pressure roller from its operative relation with the web and adhesive applying roller when the clutch is disconnected to stop the machine as well as the manner of manually reengaging the rollers in. operative web feeding relation, is

brought about by means of associated electromechanical and manually actuated devices forming no part of the present invention and which therefore have not been illustrated or described in detail herein. Such devices in a similar adhesive applying machine are fully disclosed 'in United States Patent to J. H. Murch, et al. No. 2,290,200, issued July 21, 1942, which patent is owned by the instant assignee. Reference to said patent is made herein to aid in a more complete understanding of the present invention.

When stopping a machine which is to remain idle over night or for any period suilicient to permit the adhesive to cool and solidify, the disconnecting pin 63 is adjusted as described to disconnect the adhesive applying devices from the rest of the machine. This permits of starting the machine without damaging the adhesive applying devices and permits of making any required adjustments in the other machine parts while the adhesive applying devices remain stationary.

When the adhesive applying devices are ready to be brought into operation it is only necessary to manually reengage the pressure and adhesive applying rollers in operative relation with the web and to shift the disconnecting pin 63 to the position shown in Fig. 2. The pin is thus withdrawn from the path of travel of the pawl tail member 6!. action of its long tail member H as well as, by

the light tension exerted by its spring thereupon rides on the outer surface of the clutch wheel which. at this time is standing still. When the pawl reaches the single tooth 52 on the clutch wheel it engages with the tooth and thereby starts the clutch wheel rotating. This sets the adhesive applying devices in operation.

Because of the single tooth on the clutch wheel the adhesive applying devices are set in motion at a predetermined time in relation to the moving parts at the other stations of the machine. It is this one tooth clutch that thus synchronizes the adhesive applying devices with the other devices and effects the proper register of the adhesive pattern on the web with the remainin operations subsequently performed thereon.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the form hereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodimentthereof.

The pawl under the centrifugal I claim: 1. In a machine for synchronously and successively applying adhesive and printing upon a web of material being advanced first through an adhesive applying mechanism and thence through a printing mechanism, the combination of a rotating common drive shaft for operating said mechanisms, a rotatable element operatively connected to one of-said mechanisms and having a driving connection with said shaft, a clutch pawl carried by said rotatable element, a driven shaft on which said rotatable element is loosely mounted, a single tooth clutch wheel fixed on said driven shaft, said clutch pawl being normaliy disposed in operative driving engagement with the tooth on said clutch wheel. for establishing' a driving connection between said drive shaft and said driven shaft, and means for shifting said clutch pawl out of engagement with said clutch wheel to disconnect the driven shaft from said drive shaft while the latter continues to rotate to operate the other of said mechanisms.

2. In a machine for synchronously and successively applying adhesive and printing upon a web of material being advanced first through an adhesive applying mechanism and thence through a printing mechanism, the combination of a rotating. common drive shaft for actuating said mechanisms, 8. driving pinion on said shaft, a gear operatively connected to one of said mech anisms and meshing with said pinion, a driven shaft on which said gear is loosely mounted, a clutch pawl pivotally mounted on said gear and rotatable therewith, a clutch wheel secured to said driven shaft and having a single tooth, said pawl normally having a tendency to engage said clutch wheel to disconnect the driven shaft from the drive shaft while the latter continues to rotate to actuate the other of said mechanisms, saidpin when out of the path of travel of the pawl tail allowing said pawl to resume its normal engagement with said clutch wheel tooth to again rotate said driven shaft in timed relation with the rotation of said drive shaft.

3. In a machine for synchronously and successively applying adhesive and printing upon a web of material being advanced first through an adhesive applying mechanism and thence through a printing mechanism, the combination of a retating common drive shaft for operating each of said mechanisms, a driving pinion on said shaft, a gear operatively connected to one of said mechanisms and meshing with said pinion, a driven shaft on which said gear is loosely mounted, a clutch pawl pivotally mounted on said gear and rotatable therewith, a clutch wheel fixed on said driven shaft and having a single tooth normally engaged by said pawl, a stationary pin manually adjustable into and out of the path of travel of said pawl, said pin when in the path of travel of said pawl disengaging the latter from the tooth on said clutch wheel in timed relation to the rotation of said drive shaft, and means for locking said pin in adjusted position relative to the path of travel of said pawl.

4. In a machine for synchronously and successivel applying adhesive and printing upon a shaft on which said gear is loosely mounted, a

clutch pawl pivotally mounted on said gear and rotatable therewith, a clutch wheel fixed on said driven shaft and having a single tooth normally engaged by said pawl, a stationary pin manually adjustable into andout of the path of travel of said pawl, a, pair of spaced collars on said pin setting ofi a pair oi locking grooves for respectively locating said pin in alternate positions in and out of the path 01' travel of said pawl, and a pivotally mounted latch member having selective engagement with said grooves to hold said pin in a predetermined adjusted position relative 1 to the path of travel of said pawl.

JOSEPH F. WILGUS. 

